Outwood is a district to the north of

Wakefield Wakefield is a cathedral city in West Yorkshire, England located on the River Calder. The city had a population of 99,251 in the 2011 census.https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/census/2011/ks101ew Census 2011 table KS101EW Usual resident population, ...

, a city in

West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. It is an inland and upland county having eastward-draining valleys while taking in the moors of the Pennines. West Yorkshire came into exi ...

, England. The district is centred on the A61 Leeds Road south of Lofthouse. It grew up as a

pit village A pit village, colliery village or mining village is a settlement built by colliery owners to house their workers. The villages were built on the coalfields of Great Britain during the Industrial Revolution where new coal mines were developed in ...

and was only a small settlement until the 1970s, when construction of new houses caused it to grow and merge with neighbouring settlements such as Wrenthorpe and Stanley. In 2001, it had a population of 7,623.

History

Not quite recorded in the Doomsday book, it is possible the settlement of Outwood gets its earliest literary mention in around 1400 in "The Lyttle Gest of Robyn Hode". Transcribed from at least a century of oral renditions telling the stories of Robin Hood and published in print form a century later in 1500, the prominent work features a mention of the name or phrase 'Outwoods'. This is quite possibly the earliest mention in any work of literature of one of England's greatest national myths alongside King Arthur and Joseph of Arimathea. Outwood was the site of a pit disaster on 4 March 1879, when 21 people were killed in an explosion at Deep Drop Colliery. In 1905, the miners left homeless by the Kinsley evictions camped at Outwood Hall Farm, off Victoria Street, until they were able to return to their homes in Kinsley. The area near the railway station was once the site of Lofthouse pit, that is known for the

disaster A disaster is a serious problem occurring over a short or long period of time that causes widespread human, material, economic or environmental loss which exceeds the ability of the affected community or society to cope using its own resources ...

in March 1973 that claimed the lives of several miners. The coal mine closed in 1981, and many of the coal miners subsequently took transfers to the new Selby Coalfield and left the village. The site of the mine is now a golf course, now closed, and housing estate. The Wakefield 41 Industrial Estate is also situated near to Outwood. The parish church St Mary Magdalene was dedicated in 1858.

Transport

Outwood railway station Outwood railway station is situated in the Outwood district of Wakefield in West Yorkshire, England. Outwood is the first stop on the Wakefield Line after Leeds for trains going towards Wakefield Westgate, Doncaster and Sheffield. History ...

is an unmanned station, served by Northern, offering rail services towards

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by popula ...

Doncaster Doncaster (, ) is a city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, it is the administrative centre of the larger City of Doncaster. It is the second largest settlement in South Yorkshire after Sheffield. Doncaster is situated in ...

and

Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire a ...

. The A61 (Leeds Road) runs through the middle of Outwood, connecting towards Leeds to the north and Wakefield to the south. Junction 41 of the M1 is also close-by.

Education

Outwood is home to

Outwood Grange Academy Outwood Grange Academy is a secondary school and sixth form with academy status in Outwood, near Wakefield, England. It has a mixed intake of both boys and girls ages 11–18, and has over 2,100 pupils on roll with a comprehensive admissio ...

, one of the largest secondary schools in the UK with over 2,100 students. The local primary schools are Outwood Primary Academy Ledger Lane (headteacher Rachael Skirrow) and Rooks Nest Academy (headteacher Kimberley Dawson).

Sport and recreation

Outwood is home to one park. Outwood Park has facilities for football, 5 a side, crown green bowling and a children's play area. Outwood is also home to two other playing fields and another play area. Local teams include Nightingale Football Club and Outwood Rangers Junior Football Club.

Local agriculture

Outwood is located within the

Rhubarb Triangle The Rhubarb Triangle is a area of West Yorkshire, England between Wakefield, Morley and Rothwell famous for producing early forced rhubarb. It includes Kirkhamgate, East Ardsley, Stanley, Lofthouse and Carlton. The Rhubarb Triangle was ...

. Because of its mining history Outwood has good supplies of soot and ash to condition its soil, which provide good conditions for the plant to grow.

Economy

CCE Wakefield is a main factory, with the rest of the Wakefield 41 industrial estate.
Elizabeth Anne Florist
has served the area for many years.

References

External links

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Historical photos of Outwood Community Video
{{Wakefield, West Yorkshire Suburbs of Wakefield